The Focusrite Forte 2-in, 4-out USB audio interface as a portable audio recording solution will be supported by the mainline Linux 7.0 kernel. The patches are queued in the Linux kernel’s sound subsystem development tree. While a convenient little device, the Focusrite Forte is no longer manufactured but can still be found used online.
The Focusrite Forte was designed for Windows and macOS as a USB audio interface for microphones, musical instruments, and any other line-level audio signals. The 24-bit / 192 kHz device with two remote-controlled mic pre-amps received positive reviews online but introduced years ago and is no longer manufactured. But if you happen to have one already or are able to find one used at a good price, it’s going to finally be supported by the mainline kernel.
Similar to other Focusrite Linux support over the years via the open-source community, the Forte audio device support is another user contribution. This patch tacks on the Focusrite Forte support to the Scarlett USB mixer driver. With that patch being in the sound subsystem’s “for-next” Git branch, it should be submitted as part of the Linux 6.20~7.0 merge window in February.
